Settler Tells of Call by Hebron Killer's Wife

Published: March 30, 1994

JERUSALEM, March 29—
A Jewish settler said today that minutes before the Hebron massacre, the wife of the killer had contacted him looking for her husband and saying he had not gone to the Cave of the Patriarchs shrine to pray.

The settler, Shlomo Edelstein, testified before an Israeli commission of inquiry into the Feb. 25 massacre that he had not interpreted Mrs. Goldstein's words as a warning and had not reported them to his commander.

Mr. Edelstein, who was on reserve duty with the Israeli Army, said that on the morning of the massacre he had been on duty at a communications headquarters in the settlement of Qiryat Arba when Dr. Goldstein called at about 5 A.M. and asked that the security chief of the settlement be sent to him at a local clinic.

At about 5:20 A.M., Mr. Edelstein said, he received a call from Dr. Goldstein's wife, Miriam, who asked where her husband was.

"She asked that I call him over the radio," Mr. Edelstein said. "I called several times and he didn't answer me." The doctor, who was on 24-hour call, carried a citizens band radio.

When Mrs. Goldstein asked again that her husband be contacted, Mr. Edelstein said he radioed the security officer in the jeep, who reported that he had dropped the doctor off at the Cave of the Patriarchs for prayers.

Mr. Edelstein said that when he relayed this to Mrs. Goldstein, "She told me that he had not gone to pray at the cave."